Abbots Langley 1st XI
Wednesday 26th May 2004 - Bertie Joel Cup
NLCC
vs Abbotts Langley (Bertie Joel Cup)
Wednesday
26th May 2004
A
Hart (c)
I
Johns
T
Wakeford
J
Green
R
Mathurin
J
Howard (wk)
K
Tuitt
T
Amadee
N
Mathurin
A
Hall
P
McCaig
A
midweek fixture, a bright and sunny day, a long drive out to Hertfordshire and
an NLCC team blending vibrant youth and enthusiastic experience.
So far so good. Although
Abbotts Langley turned out to be less ruddy-faced farmer country than ‘don’t
shoot until you see the whites of their socks-ville’ the ground looked good
and the players ready.
Skipper
Al Hart wasted no time losing the toss and decided to open the bowling with
Wakeford T. Highly rated Guyanan
Ricky Mohammed opened the batting for the hosts but only survived 3 balls before
being bamboozled by the Wakeford curve and losing his off stump.
A dispiriting start for AL and an innings the batsman will no doubt be
reminded of next winter by club colleague Patrick Joseph.
The other opener basically talked himself out at the end of the over
(“I’m really a second teamer”) and Nathan Mathurin was happy to roll him
over first ball. 0-2 after 1.1
overs, thoughts were turning to an early finish and the possibility that only
the NLCC openers would bat…
Abbott’s
Australian came in and played aggressively for a quick 30 before succumbing to
the extra bounce of the miserly Amadee (a neat catch by McCaig at slip) At 50-3 things still looked good for NL, especially so with
the new batsman batting like a highly strung Dalek on a pogo stick.
‘If he’s #5 bring on the others’ was the shout.
However, down the other end the Abbott’s skipper was playing strongly
off the front foot and maintaining a consistent 5 an over scoring rate.
The game looked to be there for the taking if NL could remove the
skipper.
An
hour later and the score had risen to 150-3!
The Abbotts skipper continued to play well, the pogoing Dalek was
starting to look like a player and the short boundary/fast outfield combination
was beginning to take it’s toll. Hart
rotated his bowlers skilfully trying Rod Mathurin (good pace, little luck), Adam
Hall (promising debut from Hackney College’s 16 year old seamer), Ian Johns
(tidy spell from the leaden footed batting star) and Peter McCaig (never lets
you down) As the bowlers toiled,
the batsmen thrived and the fielding started to creak.
Hart, Green and Johns all spilled catchable chances and the game began to
drift out of reach. At the end of
45 overs AL had amassed 232-4 with the captain 102* and the #5 scoring an
unlikely career best 60. Of the
bowlers only Amadee stood out with terrific figures of 9-3-8-1
Opener
Johns wasted no time running out his captain in the first over – an optimistic
single and one that not even a man of Alistair’s sprinting pedigree could
manage. There then ensued NL’s
best passage of play in the game, a rousing partnership between Johns and
Wakeford. Well crafted strokes all
around the wicket from Johns and
sweetly-timed slaps through the offside from Wakeford got the scoreboard moving.
At 80-1 NL were looking threatening, unfortunately that was as good as it
got. The introduction of an angry
geriatric from one end and a Neville Southall look-alike at the other slowed the
run-rate considerably. It was death
by dobbers as the ball was cunningly dribbled onto the slow wicket by the wily
pair. 12 runs in the next 8 overs,
another run out and Wakeford was back in the pavilion for a pleasing 37.
Johns followed shortly after chipping an ankle high catch to mid-wicket
for a cultured 49 and the collapse was on.
Green, Mathurin R and Howard soon followed leaving Ken Tuitt (Hackney
College debutant) and Amadee to repair the damage.
It was not to be and in spite some spirited straight hitting from Amadee
and another encouraging knock from Mathurin N the tail subsided leaving McCaig
not out and a final total of 140.
Summary:
They got too many, we got too few.
MOM:
Tom Amadee – A masterclass in
tight, straight bowling.
Report by: Dwaine Chambers